Ranging sensor systems, such as sonar, radar, and lidar ranging systems, for example, can be used to safely and productively operate aircraft, land vehicles, and watercraft. In particular, such systems may be used to perform bathymetry, detect underwater hazards, find fish, detect objects in a planned trajectory, and/or otherwise assist in navigation by producing data and/or imagery of the area around a vehicle, such as a water column beneath a watercraft in the context of sonar.
Conventional ranging sensor systems are typically expensive and relatively difficult to manufacture. Market pressures and convenience dictate smaller and easier to use systems that include more features and produce higher quality resulting imagery. However, smaller and more accurate ranging sensor systems can be more difficult to manufacture and operate reliably, particularly in the context of ranging sensor systems utilizing multiple sensor channels to provide broader and/or more detailed or higher resolution sensory coverage.
Thus, there is a need for an improved methodology to provide accurate and reliable compact multichannel ranging sensor systems, particularly in the context of providing relatively high quality sonar data and/or imagery using a multichannel sonar system.